Author
Topic: Dojo Etiquette (Read 13811 times)

Kung Fu and Chung Moo Doe here. Agree, bowing before entering the training area, no shoes when entering for any reason, respecting other people's training space and weapons, and basically everything else. Also, in my trainings, you must bow when entering and leaving the training room (putting your items on the floor beside you as you bow with empty arms and hands) and waiting to be acknowldged by the highest ranking belt in the room before entering, whether it is an instructor or another student. If a higher belt student requests you to do something you do it, especially if it is a request to move over if they require more training space for their practicing. Also be sure if you are bowing you are using the appropriate bow for your rank (for ours, black belts and up had a different bow).

Also, be sure to find out the appropriate, reverant manner in which to handle, bow with, and/or pass weapons if you are going to be using them. If you haven't been taught this yet then you probably haven't been cleared for handling them yet.

Never be in a training room with a dirty/stained/unkempt uniform and *always* have your belt on - unless you have just passed a belt test and are waiting to be presented with your new one. A belt is never removed in the training or public area.

No talking amongst each other either in the training room or in the waiting room. Something I ran into when visiting another school recently, parents who yell out to their children during a children's class! "Billy, the other way! pay attention! step over!" Never, never, ever....

Don't stand on the edge of the mat and chat loudly while someone is breaking a board or doing a form.

Don't argue with your instructor.

Don't make s*xually inappropriate comments to female students, especially within earshot of children. That got one of the most talented novice black belts I have ever seen, demoted to white belt and ultimately kicked out of our dojo.

If you're bleeding, get off the mat at once and get it contained. If you get blood on the mat, tell someone. If you come to class with a cut or sore, bandage it completely.

Point sparring is not about trying to kill people. If you're, say, a brown belt, don't nail a green belt with the hardest side kick you've got just to show them you can.

Do not argue with your instructor. Ever. Yes, I am friends with my instructor outside of class, and I help where I can in the dojang, but when it comes to training and who is ready for tests? If he asks my opinion, I offer, but what he says goes, even if I disagree.

We bow in and out off the school, as the flags are very visible from the entrance.

Never be in a training room with a dirty/stained/unkempt uniform and *always* have your belt on - unless you have just passed a belt test and are waiting to be presented with your new one. A belt is never removed in the training or public area.

No talking amongst each other either in the training room or in the waiting room. Something I ran into when visiting another school recently, parents who yell out to their children during a children's class! "Billy, the other way! pay attention! step over!" Never, never, ever....

Just wanted to point out that a these rules can differ from one dojo/dojang to another; the important thing is to respect the rules of the school you are in. When in doubt, of course default to the most respectful conduct you know.

My school for instance tended to be somewhat informal; full uniforms were not required to participate in class, and putting on/removing belts in the training room was acceptable (this room was larger than our actual training area). More importantly, talking among ourselves was not only allowed but encouraged. We were a club created for the enjoyment and training of like-minded students--it was pretty much expected that we would chat while warming up, joke with and encourage each other while training, give advice to others having trouble, etc. When the instructor spoke or a higher-ranked student gave instructions, everyone listened, but otherwise we were free to talk, as long as it didn't interfere with the class.

Never be in a training room with a dirty/stained/unkempt uniform and *always* have your belt on - unless you have just passed a belt test and are waiting to be presented with your new one. A belt is never removed in the training or public area.

No talking amongst each other either in the training room or in the waiting room. Something I ran into when visiting another school recently, parents who yell out to their children during a children's class! "Billy, the other way! pay attention! step over!" Never, never, ever....

Just wanted to point out that a these rules can differ from one dojo/dojang to another; the important thing is to respect the rules of the school you are in. When in doubt, of course default to the most respectful conduct you know.

My school for instance tended to be somewhat informal; full uniforms were not required to participate in class, and putting on/removing belts in the training room was acceptable (this room was larger than our actual training area). More importantly, talking among ourselves was not only allowed but encouraged. We were a club created for the enjoyment and training of like-minded students--it was pretty much expected that we would chat while warming up, joke with and encourage each other while training, give advice to others having trouble, etc. When the instructor spoke or a higher-ranked student gave instructions, everyone listened, but otherwise we were free to talk, as long as it didn't interfere with the class.

oh, of course it's different between schools (and styles)! That's why I put what styles I had experience in at the beginning of my post, to point out those were the rules in the courses of MY training experience. I know schools differ in formality levels. After visiting other schools and knowing people from other styles/schools, it came to my realization that my school was almost militant in its formality

ETA: My last statement in my post, though, I still can't believe would be acceptable in any school: the yelling out of parents in the waiting room to their children in the training room, during a class being taught by an instructor. Maybe it's just me?

Never be in a training room with a dirty/stained/unkempt uniform and *always* have your belt on - unless you have just passed a belt test and are waiting to be presented with your new one. A belt is never removed in the training or public area.

No talking amongst each other either in the training room or in the waiting room. Something I ran into when visiting another school recently, parents who yell out to their children during a children's class! "Billy, the other way! pay attention! step over!" Never, never, ever....

Just wanted to point out that a these rules can differ from one dojo/dojang to another; the important thing is to respect the rules of the school you are in. When in doubt, of course default to the most respectful conduct you know.

My school for instance tended to be somewhat informal; full uniforms were not required to participate in class, and putting on/removing belts in the training room was acceptable (this room was larger than our actual training area). More importantly, talking among ourselves was not only allowed but encouraged. We were a club created for the enjoyment and training of like-minded students--it was pretty much expected that we would chat while warming up, joke with and encourage each other while training, give advice to others having trouble, etc. When the instructor spoke or a higher-ranked student gave instructions, everyone listened, but otherwise we were free to talk, as long as it didn't interfere with the class.

oh, of course it's different between schools (and styles)! That's why I put what styles I had experience in at the beginning of my post, to point out those were the rules in the courses of MY training experience. I know schools differ in formality levels. After visiting other schools and knowing people from other styles/schools, it came to my realization that my school was almost militant in its formality

ETA: My last statement in my post, though, I still can't believe would be acceptable in any school: the yelling out of parents in the waiting room to their children in the training room, during a class being taught by an instructor. Maybe it's just me?

Oh, I definitely that the parents shouldn't be interfering unless the instructor has specifically asked (My school was a college club, so the only kids we had were a couple of children of a professor; they were quite mature young ladies, so there was no reason for their parents to yell to them. )

What I was responding to was the "No talking amongst each other either in the training room or in the waiting room," which was in the same paragraph. I just wanted to point out that that wasn't a "standard" rule for martial arts classes that I knew of, especially not for adult classes. I realize you were describing the style in your school; I just wanted to make sure it wasn't taken as "standard dojo etiquette" by someone less experienced, since it would vary widely depending on school or just even on who's teaching that day within the same school.

BTW, a question: when discussing general martial arts (rather than a specific type, such as Karate, Tae Kwon Do, etc.), how do you generally refer to things like a martial arts school, a uniform, an instructor, etc? Do you use the terms from your own style, more generally know terms (e.g. the Japanese terms used in Karate), the equivalents in English/whatever language you're speaking? To clarify, I'm learning Tae Kwon Do (a Korean art), so the school and uniform would be called "dojang" and "dobok", respectively. But "dojo" and "gi" seem to be better-known terms to the general public. So in my position, in a thread like this about multiple arts, would you use the terms "dojang" and "dobok", "dojo" and "gi", "school" and "uniform", or something different?

Usually I refer to terms in in what I think would be the more widely understood terms, such as "uniform", "instructor", "school", and "training room". There are so many styles and terminology that I usually stick to generals unless I'm speaking to someone else who is in the arts/same art. So, for this instance, in case someone were looking for "dojo etiquette" but weren't necessarily students of the arts (either family members of a student or just interested) I would use terms everyone can relate to

Never be in a training room with a dirty/stained/unkempt uniform and *always* have your belt on - unless you have just passed a belt test and are waiting to be presented with your new one. A belt is never removed in the training or public area.

In our style (or just our dojo, perhaps) we're quite casual about our belts, and often put them on in the dojo after we've changed. If I ever visit another dojo I'll put my belt on in the changeroom and see what the other students do.

I love threads like this one because you can learn such useful knowledge.

No talking amongst each other either in the training room or in the waiting room. Something I ran into when visiting another school recently, parents who yell out to their children during a children's class! "Billy, the other way! pay attention! step over!" Never, never, ever....

As casual as we are about belts, we're the opposite when it comes to talking during tests. I know my sensei would have no problems ejecting any parent (or any other onlooker) who talked during the test.

In the schools I've been in, women wear clean white t-shirts under their uniforms. No, a sport bra is not enough. Nor is a spaghetti-strap tank top. This is for modesty. No one wants an accidental display.

In general, men should not wear a shirt under their uniforms without a health reason which they have discussed with the instructor. No socks, without a reason.

Come to the mat/training area with your full kit on. Your kit should be clean every time (though in my school, we never washed our belts). Learn to tie your belt properly (especially once you have been promoted - I think it looks really awful for ranked students to have poorly-tied belts).

After sparring, immediately adjust your uniform if it has become disheveled.

We also bowed when entering and exiting the building, when getting on and off the training mat, at the start and end of lessons, when beginning or ending a sparring match, and when given specific instruction from the teacher.